Traffic Cop Encounters Gone Wrong
Getting pulled over by police is always unpleasant, but it is usually not disastrous. A traffic citation is the last thing anyone needs in these times of tight budgets, but getting a traffic ticket is far from the worst-case scenario. The trouble is that, when a police officer is outside your car window as you reach for your license and vehicle registration, the officer is looking for reasons to search your car. Traffic stops are among the few situations where police can search a person’s property without first obtaining a search warrant from the court. Here, our Miami criminal defense lawyer explains recent cases that began with traffic stops.
Pembroke Pines Woman Gets DUI Charges After Failing to Secure Child Properly in Booster Seat
Children’s birthday parties are a blast for children, but they are a boatload of stress for adults. It must have driven our parents crazy when our friends gathered in the house to play pin the tail on the donkey, and then to freeze dance to “Material Girl” until it was time to partition a sheet cake from Publix, but it seems like the young generation’s birthday parties have only gotten more overstimulating, since the new generation of guests is not used to being away from their devices for the duration of an entire party. Whether your biggest triggers are noise, messes, or children’s tantrums, a child’s birthday party is a house of horrors until you and your offspring can wish the birthday star a happy birthday one last time and head home.
In September 2026, a Pembroke Pines woman presumably thought that she was in the clear after surviving a birthday party at which her five-year-old daughter was a guest, but the adventures did not end as mother and daughter made their way home. As overstimulated children who have spent the past several hours at a birthday party often do, the child somehow wiggled out of her booster seat and dangled her head and upper body out the window of the car when it was stopped at a red light. This would not have been so much of a problem if it had not attracted the attention of a police officer who was driving nearby in a patrol car. What prompted the officer to initiate a traffic stop, though, was that the woman started driving when the light turned green, even though the child was still leaning out the open window.
When the driver pulled over and the officer made contact, the officer noticed that the driver seemed intoxicated. She said that she had smoked cannabis earlier that day, and that she drank one margarita at the party. The officer administered a blood test; according to the police report, he thought the driver was acting like she had consumed more alcohol than that. Her blood alcohol content (BAC) was 0.12 percent, which is well above the DUI threshold of 0.08 percent. The driver was booked into the Broward County jail, where her bond amount was set at $8,000. She is currently facing charges for DUI and child endangerment.
Lee County Man Charged With Drug Trafficking After Stopping Car in Crosswalk at Intersection
A minor mistake can lead to a traffic stop, which can be the first domino to fall, and the situation can escalate until a person who went out for what was supposed to be an uneventful drive faces felony charges. The mistake does not have to be anything as egregious as pressing the accelerator while a child is dangling out of the window. It can be something as simple as stopping too far forward at an intersection.
This is what happened to a man in Lee County in September. The driver stopped his car in the middle of the crosswalk instead of behind it. A Lee County Sheriff’s deputy who saw the car in the crosswalk approached the driver with the intent of issuing a traffic citation. According to the police report, the deputy noticed a cannabis smell in the car, and he cited this as probable cause for a search. The search yielded a blue plastic box that contained more than four pounds of cocaine.
According to Florida law, drug trafficking charges apply if a defendant possesses more than 28 grams of cocaine. Since the defendant in this case is charged with possessing more than two kilograms of cocaine, the charges carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If he is convicted of this charge, and is not able to reduce the charge through a plea deal, he will not become eligible for parole during his sentence.
Contact Our Criminal Defense Attorneys
A South Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing charges after a traffic stop. Contact Ratzan & Faccidomo in Miami, Florida for a confidential consultation about your case.
Sources:
msn.com/en-us/news/other/florida-mom-busted-for-dui-after-cop-spots-5-year-old-daughter-dangling-out-car-window/ar-AA2cnFQF?ocid=msedgntp&pc=ACTS&cvid=6aac6abba804403686f844b86b271dd3&ei=49
msn.com/en-us/news/other/florida-traffic-stop-for-crosswalk-violation-turns-up-4-6-pounds-of-cocaine/ar-AA2cvkdp?ocid=msedgntp&pc=ACTS&cvid=6aadd2008fdb4985afe81fbe611a053e&ei=16
